I had a song stuck in my head the other day, and it really sunk in:
"What language shall I borrow to thank Thee, dearest Friend, for this, Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end? O make me Thine forever! And should I fainting be, Lord let me never, never outlive my love to Thee!"
It is a verse from one of the hymns I have been writing about on Sundays -- "O Sacred Head Now Wounded". Don't worry; I'm not going into hymns at this point. I was just thinking about the emotion behind the verse. There are terms in there like "dearest Friend" and "my love to Thee" that bespeak a deep connection. It is beyond simple "faith", beyond mere mental acknowledgment. It is intimacy.
Paul writes of the same concept. "I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ" (Phil. 3:8). Paul says here, "Anything good, honorable, meritorious, worthwhile that I have in life rate as trash compared to the surpassing value of knowing Christ." "Surpassing value," that's how Paul viewed his relationship with His Lord.
I wonder how many times it is that way with us. How much of the time are we simply going through the motions, operating on the knowledge that we have a relationship with Christ without the emotional import of such a relationship? How often do we embrace Him with our hearts? How often does that longing well up within us that says, "Lord, I don't know that I can stand another day without being in Your arms"? Or is it more often a simple reality in which we don't really invest our emotions?
I don't know. Sometimes I'm struck with His nearness and His love. I'm overcome with the blessings He bestows and the gifts He gives. I'm overwhelmed with the sacrifice He made for me at the cross. But sometimes I can pass through a day barely acknowledging Him. Too often I am more like the Ephesians, losing sight of my first love.
Emotions are the human response to how we think. If we think of something as good, we'll be happy. If we think of it as funny, we'll be amused. If we think of it as sad, we'll be sad. What does it tell me about myself when I have little emotional response to Christ Jesus, my Lord? I think we know the answer to that.
"What language shall I borrow to thank Thee, dearest Friend, for this, Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end? O make me Thine forever! And should I fainting be, Lord let me never, never outlive my love to Thee!"
2 comments:
A friend and I were talking about how stupid we are that we sob at "girly" movies, but can read through the Gospels without a tear in our eyes.
Just goes to show how far we've fallen, and how greatly we need our Savior.
It's amazing how those old hymns still wake up our spirit. The Word is a living thing, I suppose.
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